About WPI-SKCM² Fusion Projects

WPI-SKCM² is an interdisciplinary institute where researchers from six core disciplines join forces to explore the science of knot topology and chirality, aiming to address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

WPI-SKCM² researchers represent a wide range of expertise, including mathematicians specializing in topology and knot theory; physicists working in subatomic matter and high-energy particle physics; quantum materials researchers focused on chiral magnets and momentum-space topology; (bio)polymer experts studying proteins, supramolecular structures, polysaccharides, and others systems; scientists in liquid crystals and colloids investigating chiral nematic systems, active matter, and more; and planetary scientists and cosmologists exploring the origins of life and the universe.

Our researchers collaborate across 10 Fusion Projects, organized into three thematic pillars:

• Chemistry-Driven Fusion Research
  
• Math & Computational Meta Matter Design
  
• Physics Universality-Based Designs
  

Each Fusion Project pursues fundamental research related to knot topology and chirality that bridges traditional disciplinary boundaries, bringing together researchers from multiple fields. And all projects are guided by a shared focus on questions that may help unlock solutions to global sustainability challenges.

Links to Projects

• Bio-frontiers: Knotoids & Linkoids in Chiral Living Systems
  Studying the mathematics and biology of tangles, focusing primarily on knotted proteins
• Chemistry & Cosmochemistry
  Studying knot and chirality patterns found in both materials and the universe
• Mathematical Metamatter Design
  Designing knotted chiral meta matter from the principles of knot topology
• Computational Designs of Matter
  Designing knotted and chiral meta matter using computation and AI
• Textiles & Skins
  Studying how the topology and chirality of flexible systems shapes material properties and behavior
• Knotted & Porous Materials
  Developing knotted and porous materials, including crystals and aerogels
• Active & Colloidal Matter for Light Management
  Investigating chiral transfer in soft matter systems to expand our fundamental understanding about chirality
• Particle Physics Fusion with Material Sciences
  Investigating knotted and chiral metamaterials, including those in extreme conditions on Earth and in space
• Chiral Magnetic Effect & Momentum Space Topology
  Exploring topological band structures and their emergent phenomena in quantum materials
• Meta Matter Models & Mimics of Phenomena
  Meta matter design through recreation of fundamental scale-invariant phenomena in experimentally accessible systems